Congress to Employers: “Do as I say, not as I do”

Many of our elected members of Congress are once again abiding by the “do as I say, not as I do” approach.

Roughly 97 percent of the Congressional sponsors of the “Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2013” and the “Healthy Families Act” hypocritically fail to pay their employee interns any wage, according to a new report by the Employment Policies Institute. Among those select few who do pay, no paid leave is offered.

Legislators understand that mandating pay or benefits for all employees would prevent Congressional offices from hiring more staffers. A similar concept applies in the private sector, where businesses can’t simply absorb the cost of a new pay or benefit mandate without raising prices or cutting costs and staff.

The report also shows that only about 13 percent of these politicians have an educational background in business or economics – two policy areas which could give them a greater understanding of the actual consequences of the policies they’re supporting.